While RFC6282 allows for compression of IPv6 and UDP in IEEE 802.15.4 networks (6LoWPAN-HC). The GHC adds a more general, form of compression for headers of any kind and even for header-like payloads such as those exhibited by routing protocols, DHCP, etc.

Higher Efficiency

The number of Internet of Things (IoT) devices will significantly increase, which results in an increased demand for the use of IPv6 and the actual adoption of IPv6 for the device communication. IPv6 adds at least 20bytes to each IP datagram transmitted (compared to IPv4) by IoT devices carrying user data such as voice, control information, or sensor data. Small IoT devices and applications transfer small amounts of data, including voice data, for which a typical payload size equals just around 25 bytes per IPv6 datagram. Sensor data, control information, or status information is considered to be equally small.
Thus the ratio between payload (e.g. 20 byte) and IPv6 header size (40 byte) equals 1:2. This means for each 20 byte payload, the network carries 40 bytes of “address” information, the so called “overhead”.
This ratio becomes even worse if the higher layer protocols are taken into account as well: 20 byte payload vs. IPv6 + UDP plus RTP for voice data (60 byte) results in a ratio of 1:3.

Low Latency

Especially wireless links / networks are affected by low packet throughput, jitter, and delay; as a consequence, especially voice applications suffer from these shortcomings. Header compression is capable of reducing delay, allowing to process smaller packets faster; it allows to control the jitter, and it addresses the packet throughput by increasing the efficiency and reducing the error probability by reducing the packet size.

Reliability

The application of header compression reduces the size of a packet significantly. Wireless links are error prone as they are suffering from high error probability. While a bit error probability remains stable, header compression addresses the packet error probability. A shorter (smaller) packet has a lower error probability than a normal sized packet. In addition, the use of header compression in an IoT (or other wireless networks) increases the service security (reliability) by the fact that the important header information – the address and application information, which must remain intact at all times – is protected by reducing its size down to a minimum, actually resulting in a header error probability that is equal to the error probability of just 1 to 2 bytes on the wireless link.

Security

By compressing headers of IPv4 and IPv6 datagrams on a communications link using a context based compression, it becomes harder to eavesdrop on such link. Of course, header compression does not include any kind of encryption, thus the payload remains unchanged at all time. However, the pure reduction of the protocol header information down to e.g. a single byte prevents an eavesdropper from matching IP datagrams to a specific traffic stream without knowledge of the compression context and compression scheme. But as additional benefit, the encryption of a compressed header portion or a shorter packet needs less computational resources than the encryption of a full sized packet, respectively the full sized header. In turn, the saved CPU cycles could be used to apply even stronger encryption without needs for additional CPU power.

While RFC6282 allows for compression of IPv6 and UDP in IEEE 802.15.4 networks (6LoWPAN-HC). The GHC adds a more general, form of compression for headers of any kind and even for header-like payloads such as those exhibited by routing protocols, DHCP, etc.

Availability: Now – acticom compression protocol stack software for IoT is available now.

Simple Licensing: acticom offers simple and straightforward licensing for its protocol software. A single license covering both versions, or just the chosen version. The software, support, and deliverable options are equal. The license grants all necessary rights to integrate the software, modify and port as required, and distribute with the chosen products. Source code can be included, along with initial integration support, and documentation.

Options to extend the software by additional compression profiles or specific modifications should not affect the license and granted flexibility to use the software, thus add-ons are always following the basic, simple acticom one time license model.

How we work with our customers

Your product and time to market is the driver for our cooperation with you. acticom supports you and your team from day one after delivering the source code to your engineers.

Our team of software engineers closely works with your team to achieve fast integration and test with your platform. Dedicated contacts at acticom provide a quick turn-around time for reqeuests sent by your engineering team.

Our products are proven and tested. We are delivering protocol software since 2001 to our customers. Applications of our RoHC and RoHCv2 for EVDO, 3G, LTE, Satellite systems, and especially Test & Measurement systems have made acticom protocol stacks to a de-facto standard in the area of Header Compression.

Support does not end with successful integration – we provide ongoing support, updates and upgrades of the existing protocol stack software, and continue working with our customers to ensure the chosen protocol software keeps up-to-date with changing standards and requirements.

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acticom is offering know-how and software for mobile telecommunication networks since 1999. Formed by professionals from the software industry, the mobile business, and wireless research the company is based on the fundamentals for mobile telecommunication. Our engineers have a strong background in telecommunications and system programming, and our whole team is focused on improving the systems and devices we are and will be using daily.